Prevalence of non-communicable disease risk factors and their association with economic status: findings from the 2021 health behaviour of population survey in Thailand.

BACKGROUND

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are major contributors to mortality and disease burden; however, evidence regarding NCD risk factors, particularly socioeconomic factors, remains limited.

OBJECTIVES

We investigated the prevalence of five key behavioural risk factors for NCDs (smoking, alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, unhealthy diet, and overweight/obesity) within the Thai population and the influence of economic status on these risk factors.

METHODS

We gathered secondary data from the 2021 health Behaviour of Population Survey. Data were derived from a stratified, nationally representative household survey using two-stage sampling. Economic status was categorised into very low, low, middle, high, and very high levels.

RESULTS

Among the 207,191 participants (weighted to represent 26,600,947 participants), the most prevalent NCD risk factor was an unhealthy diet (56.93%), followed by overweight/obesity (50.03%), physical inactivity (42.70%), alcohol consumption (29.73%), and smoking (16.61%). Higher economic levels were associated with increased odds of alcohol consumption (e.g. adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.13, 95% CI: 1.03-1.25 for high) and an unhealthy diet (AOR = 1.26, 95% CI: 1.15-1.38 for very high), while smoking odds decreased (AOR = 0.67, 95% CI: 0.59-0.77 for very high). Physical inactivity exhibited a U-shaped association, and overweight/obesity slightly increased at the highest economic levels (AOR = 1.10, 95% CI: 1.01-1.21).

CONCLUSION

Unhealthy dietary patterns and overweight/obesity were the most prevalent NCD risk factors. Smoking was the least prevalent. Tailored, evidence-based interventions targeting specific economic groups are needed to effectively reduce NCD risk factors and promote health equity.